Ever wanted to be in charge? Well, in my own little world I will be, one day. Just not quite yet. I'm a bit tired at the moment... maybe I'll take over after I've had my little nap.
The United Dingdom - stating the bleeding obvious so you don't have to.
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Thursday, 19 May 2016

Jailbirds

In life, we are told, we get out only as much as we put
in. We are fed life-affirming aphorisms in a steady drip, drip, drip, to keep
us on the right and righteous path. You can be anything you want to be, if you
put in the effort. Reach for the sky. Keep your nose clean. Work hard, play
hard. To the victor, the spoils. And on it goes; do as you’re told, the world
needs people who do as they’re told and of course, virtue is its own reward. Don’t
you love that last one? No, you can’t have a pay rise, but keep up the good
work for the sheer thrill of doing good work.

But of course it’s true; the human world thrives on the
labours of those who go the extra mile. The volunteers, the perfectionists,
those who do indeed find virtue in becoming so good at what they do that their
financial remuneration is outstripped by the sheer satisfaction of being the
best, in all walks of life. For those who can’t be the best there is still the
warm glow of providing for your family, of standing on your own two feet. Or,
of course, in our wonderful welfare universe, there is always the opportunity
to stand on the feet of others.

Another old saying is that it’s the squeaky wheel that
gets the grease and central to yesterday’s Queen’s speech was oiling a squeak
that gets worse with every passing decade. That some people need to be removed
from society can be without doubt. Serial violent offenders who will not or
cannot reform obviously need to be prevented from pursuing their destructive
patterns of behaviour. But what of the others; is jail time a suitable
punishment for people who haven’t paid parking fines... or intemperate
tweeters?

Is the answer soft prison, or as is being suggested
part-time prison? Or turn-around prison where those who have resisted education
thus far are force fed skills and knowledge that will get them work? Or iPad
prison, which for some will be much the same as usual, whiling away the days
watching YouTube and Snapchatting penis pictures to their future victims. Penal
reform is a tough one because while nobody seriously disputes the value of
rehabilitation it is yet another area where the reward isn’t for endeavour but
for displaying contempt.

Work hard at school, go on to college, get qualified, get
a job, graft, improve and then spend your life getting by; you’re on your own,
mate. But play truant, misbehave, stay in bed, get high and go on the rob to
feed your selfish cravings and society diverts ever greater resources in your
direction. Resources that could be used to educate the next generation, tend to
the sick and pension off the workers end up being consumed by a relatively
small population who couldn’t or wouldn’t play by the rules. Again.

Once outside the prison system, the life chances of
ex-convicts are poor in the extreme, so it’s little wonder so many become
recidivists; they just bounce endlessly between welfare and Wormwood Scrubs.
This is what Australia was once for but that avenue is now closed to us. Sadly,
the taking classes are also more prolific breeders than the paying classes, so
unless real solutions are found this is a problem which can only get worse. Do
we pour more good resources after bad, or get more radical with the deterrent?

Yesterday in Parliament...

Punishment is absolutely necessary – prison shouldn’t be
a never-ending round of second chances – but in a world where blatant
dishonesty pays so well (look no further than pocket-lining politicians for an
example) some may feel a few months of incarceration is a small price to pay
and soft punishments a slap in the face for the taxpayer. At the heart of penal
reform should be the question of exactly what type of behaviour we wish to
encourage.

3 comments:

There is one certainty a criminal in prison can not commit crimes whilst in it to those outside of it that is. As it has become apparent that criminal activity is rampant inside of them. Transportation was an effective way to export crime cannot wait for Mars to be colonised plenty of space there for penal colonies